Modi slams Congress over Pitroda's remark on 1984 riots

Upping the ante against Congress leader Sam Pitroda over his reported "Hua toh hua" (it just happened) remarks on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday slammed the Congress for its "arrogance".

"Yesterday, one of the top Congress leaders said the 1984 riots just happened ('Hua toh Hua'). These three words sum up the arrogance of the Congress," he told an election meeting here in Haryana on the last day of campaigning for the sixth phase of Lok Sabha polls.

"The leader is close to the Gandhi family, a good friend of (the late) Rajiv Gandhi and a 'guru' (mentor) of Rahul Gandhi," Modi said without naming Pitroda.

He said while hundreds of Sikhs were burnt to death by with petrol and diesel and with burning tyres flung around their necks, "the Congress is saying 'Hua toh Hua'."

"Thousands of Sikhs were killed outside their homes but today the Congress is saying 'Hua toh Hua'. Sikhs were targeted in Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and other states. The rioters were led by the Congress. This sin was committed by every small Congress leader, but today the Congress is saying, 'Hua toh hua'," Modi said.

In his 23-minute speech, the Prime Minister took a dig only at the Congress.

BJP-ruled Haryana will go to the polls for all its 10 Lok Sabha seats on May 12.
IANS